If I walk into a bank in the state of California with a check made out
to me from my Father's life insurance (he died in August) for
$123,000.00 and asked to open an account, how long will it take for me
to be able to access my money? Will a hold be put on it? Will I have
to pay the bank for their services? I'm 22 years old and don't know
what to do with this check. I do not want an attorney. I just want to
deposit the check and have full access to the funds.

The easiest way to answer your question is to call a bank of interest
and ask them. It will depend also upon the type of check; a certified
check will be easier.

Many banks do put holds on checks by those opening new accounts. It
varies by bank. Here in McAllen,a local bank holds large checks many
days after it is cleared, which is certainly unethical.

In no case should it be held over 15 days, and probably only 5
business days, since Federal law requires checks to be cleared in that
time.  Some banks may let you have some part of it right away, if it
is a certified check.

As I said, your best bet is to call or visit a bank and ask them.  If
you have to wait two weeks for that much money, I bet you will
survive...

Take good i.d. when you go to the bank.  The usual driver's license is
usually good enough.

Every bank in the US will have a written policy describing the length
of time they hold the check.  There are several ways you can minimize
the hold time.  First, take a look at the bank the check is drawn
from.  If you go to a branch of that bank, the teller can verify that
the check is good and it will clear in maybe a day.  Or you can go to
a bank in the same state as the bank that issued the check.  In-state
checks sometimes clear faster.  You can contact the insurance company
and ask them to issue a certified check which takes less time to
clear.  Some insurance companies are affiliated with banks and can
open an account for you and send you a debit card and a box of checks.

Believe me, if you walk in with a large check like that, the bank
should be more than happy to answer any question you have.

You should not have to pay a fee to do business with the bank.  That
does not mean that they will not try to talk you into things that will
cost you.  Some suggestions they have may be worth what they cost, but
if you just want an account to put the money in, then maybe all you
need to pay for is a box of checks.

I would strongly suggest that you seek the advice of a financial
planner.  He or she can discuss your goals and suggest places to put
the money depending on what your short term and long term goals are. 
Having it sit in a bank account earning no or very little interest is
a waste of money if there is a better place for the money depending on
your goals.

PhilNJ has given you extremely good advice, especially the part about
finding a financial planner.  The bank can provide some assistance
with this but generally are limited to their own products.  Figuring
out how to safely divide the money between a stock portfolio, mutual
funds, CDs, etc, is precisely what the finacial planner will help you
with.  When I was 22 if I had a situation like that I would have been
highly irresponsible with the money.  Take Phil's advice.

You asked in the subject line about "CASHING" a large check.  I need
to make this point extremely clear.  DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE
CASH THE CHECK. If you want access to it by way of a checking account
or the purchase of cashier's checks, that's fine.  But if you get CASH
(that is, bills of various denominations) extremely bad things will
happen. The first of which is you make yourself a huge security
target. Even worse, when you walk in to buy a car (for expample) with
a huge wad of cash, YOU WILL BE REPORTED TO THE FBI.  All cash
transactions exceeding $10,000 are considered suspicious and are
reported. To the Feds, anyone buying anything or depositing huge
amounts of cash smell like drug dealers. Do not attempt to fly under
the radar. You can buy that car with the money safely in the bank, I
promise you.  If you want $1000 to blow in Las Vegas that's up to you
but beyond that you should learn to use the banking system.  By the
way, insurance checks are tax-free in case that is part of your
rationale for "cashing" the thing.  You got the money fair and square
and have no need to engage in money laundering.